Posts Tagged ‘Wrecking Balm’

After finishing medical school, I began my residency in a hospital one year ago. Some of the residents and I have tattoos. The hospital has a policy against visible tattoos. This is a very common policy in Hospitals, so my fellow residents and I decided it was best to try and remove the tattoos. In looking into removing them there were so many choices. The female residents preferred not to use laser, mostly because they were worried about the chance of scarring. All of us however, were not keen on the pain. Another downside to laser is that laser is not effective with certain colors, thereby leaving parts of the tattoo visible. After deciding against last we were left with a few options: Nuviderm, InkBusters, Wrecking Balm, Tat B Gone, and Tattoo OFF. We decided to use our scientific background and decided to test a few products. We went through with the test for our personal benefit, but we also figured that if we were to advise our patients in the future on this subject, we should know about the tattoo removal methods available. We purchased 5 products and tested them for two things: (1) Do any of the products work? (2) Which one of the products works best?

The two acids Nuviderm and InkBusters are cheap, however, we deemed them not worth buying. As medical doctors the thought of burning the skin off did not seem like a good idea. Even after putting up with the pain, discomfort, and chance of infection, those acids did not remove the tattoo. Both Nuviderm and InkBusters claim that they will lighten the tattoo. These products did lighten our tattoos a tiny bit. However, it seemed to us that there were too many disclaimers, and too many ways to go wrong for little to no gain.

We were really excited about trying Wrecking Balm. With all that advertising they do they are certainly right in your face. The students specializing in Dermatology and Surgery were skeptical of the sanding machine. They thought long term use may cause scarring, calluses or infections. One Psychology student thought some people, who are very anxious to get rid of their tattoo, may try and sand their way down to the ink. What a painful mess that could be. Still we were excited. Upon testing Wrecking Balm we seemed to run into approximately the same results as the acids, Nuviderm and InkBusters, just slower. We did experience some initial fading at first, and then the fading leveled off with hardly any more results. Some say Wrecking Balm is an acid mixed in a cream and our results tend to verify this. We do not think this product is worth purchasing.

Well, the good news is we did find two products that worked well and we liked. We found both Tat B Gone and Tattoo OFF to be effective and pain free. They were gentle to the skin and no one in the test group had a problem with the ingredients nor was there any skin irritation. Both Tat B Gone and Tattoo OFF are gentle creams and are easy to apply. Some of my fellow residents noticed results quite fast; however some residents with darker tattoos required a longer period of time to achieve the same level of fading as the others. All, but one resident felt the fading process proceeded at an acceptable pace.

Which was better, Tat B Gone or Tattoo OFF? It is hard to say. It will certainly require much more testing. An unscientific “gut feeling” from some of us who used both was that Tat B Gone might work a fraction faster and Tattoo OFF is a bit gentler to the skin.

We were happy to find two out of five products which produced painless results. Not only are we now tattoo free, but we are able to recommend both Tat B Gone and Tattoo OFF to our colleagues at different medical facilities. And we are able to give our patients an honest answer when they ask us about tattoo removal.

Tattoos are a form of artistic expression, using one’s body as a canvas. The designs that people use are infinite, and the possibilities are endless. It is rightly claimed that getting your body tattooed is highly addictive. But, many times, a person may find that the design on his/her body doesn’t hold relevance in his/her life anymore, and hence, want it removed. It is a permanent mark on one’s body, so after its removal, it will almost certainly leave either a scar, or some remnants of the ink.

One of the most widely used methods of tattoo removal, is treatment by laser. The effectiveness of this method is inconsistent, as different people respond differently to it. It is also a painful method, and does not come cheap.

Alternately, you can choose to remove your tattoo at home. There are many ways in which you can do this. If you opt for this, there is a high chance of developing infection, or your body ending up permanently scarred. If you wish to remove a highly colorful and intricate design, it is advisable to go to a specialist, and undergo laser treatment. Home removal should be done only when the design is simple and unicolored.

This is one of the most commonly employed methods, and is considered the safest. There are a multitude of creams and balms available in the market, and they are widely accepted as least damaging of all other methods. The downside about them is that, they take a few months to start showing results, and for certain skin types, they may not work at all. But, if you are hesitant to go in for surgery, or other extreme means, then it’s better to try your hand at cream first. These creams lighten the ink on your skin, and make the tattoo fade away, by working on your skin pigmentation. Success is not guaranteed, by the utilization of this method, but it is most definitely worth trying. Some commonly available products are, Tat B Gone, Tattoo Off, and Wrecking Balm.

By using an abrasive material, you can remove your tattoo, as it is inked into the top layers of your skin. If you’re scrubbing away the top layer using sandpaper or a pumice stone, make sure you use anti bacterial powder, to avoid infection. Consult a doctor before you do this though, as you may have sensitive skin that may not tolerate this procedure. Also, remember that this is not a method suitable for people with low pain thresholds. While performing this method, wash the design with soap, and then begin scrubbing or ‘sanding’, till the area starts bleeding. Wrap it in bandages, and let a scab form and fall. Repeat this procedure again if you choose to. This method is commonly known as dermabrasion.

You may come across certain tattoo artists, who will agree to draw over your unwanted design, using a saline solution. This technique is advisable only for old designs that have weathered over time. Another time to adopt this method, is when you wish to make an old one fade away, and get a new one over the same area.

Since tattoos have been around for a long time, even before laser surgery existed, there are other more crude ways of getting them removed. Most of these methods can be very painful, and their effectiveness is highly debatable. In almost every case, they will end up leaving a permanent scar on your body, and they also carry a very high risk of infection. One more method is known as excision. In this, the tattoo would actually be peeled off, and the remaining skin sewn back together. It goes without saying that this is not advisable.

Getting laser surgery is expensive, but the results are far more effective and proven than other methods. A tattoo is after all permanent ink on your body, so removing it is always going to be a difficult proposition. Ideally, this situation should simply be avoided by carefully pondering over whether you’re getting the right design for yourself. It’s a permanent commitment, and you need to be completely ready for it, before you go ahead and ink yourself.

Lookin’ to get some ink done? Of course you are. There’s a certain time in your life where you look at your body and think to yourself, “hey, I should really permanently mar my flesh by tattooing ink into my skin.” It’s like a rite of passage.

If you’ve gotta get a tattoo, here are some fun ideas for what you should choose.

There’s nothing cooler than a tattoo of a word you don’t understand, right? And if you can’t understand it, you can’t regret it! It doesn’t even matter if it doesn’t say what you think it does. Just keep believing, and don’t wonder why the Chinese kids across the hall are laughing at you all the time.

2. The name of a lover.

You will surely be in love with them forever, and there’s no need to make any plans otherwise. Tattoo their name. Do it. Be sure to tattoo it really big across your chest, even if you’re a woman; that way, you’ll never have the option of getting into any relationship if your partner’s name isn’t Ethan.

3. A symbol.

Something that means Infinity or Forever or Love or something massive like that. That way, people will ask you to explain the tattoo all the time, and they’ll realize what a tool you are when you launch into a long description of how you first saw an Ankh and it just hit you, man, like you’d known all your life that you needed that thing over your left nipple.

4. Something very related to current events.

For instance, “ANNA NICOLE SMITH 2/08/2007 NEVER FORGET” or the name of your favorite vice presidential candidate. After all, anything that’s interesting now will surely be interesting twenty years from now, right?

5. Something massive.

You don’t want one of those little tattoos that don’t carry any sort of power or any element of danger; you want a tattoo that’s the size of your whole freakin’ back! No, you want a tattoo that’s even bigger than your body! Get a few friends together; you can each make up part of a giant tattoo, and form like Voltron to let people see it.

Whatever your tattoo choice, remember; it doesn’t come off too easily. Of course, they are coming up with balms like Wrecking Balm and laser treatments that are starting to remove tattoos easily and painlessly, but that defeats the purpose of a tattoo; it’s supposed to be permanent, dammit, and painful as hell!

Make a mental pact with yourself. Whatever your bad tattoo choice, no matter how politically incorrect or atrocious it seems in thirty years, you won’t remove it. It’s your body, man. Make it an eyesore and be proud.